Skulduggery Pleasant: When Dead Walk the Earth
by cooldragon95
Summary: Abigail is 16 years and lives in Dublin. But that's just until she meets Skulduggery Pleasant. She discovers that she has powers and together with Skulduggery and his friends, she will save the world. Full of humour and action. Join the adventure!
1. Prologue

**A/N: This is a re-write of my fanfic about Skulduggery Pleasant. I hope that you'll like it even better than the last one. ^^ Feel free to hate me, but don't judge me.**

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Prologue:  
**A Night in Dublin**

An old man was running down the street. The moon was high up on the sky and the street lights were lit, throwing an almost ghostlike light on the man. In his arms, he held a book. A book which he knew could cause hell if it ended up in the wrong hands – something he had to prevent.

Something was chasing him; he couldn't exactly tell what it was. All he knew was that it would kill him if it got its hand on him and the book.

He made a turn in to an alley that led to the street on the other side of the houses. But someone was waiting there for him. Two Cleavers were there and between them, stood a man. His face was played with by shadows and his eyes stared at the old man from their sockets.

"Hello, Mr. Pieters."

The old man – Mr. Pieters – heard a growling behind him. "What do you want?" he said.

"The book, Mr. Pieters. Give it to me," the man said.

"Go to hell," Mr. Pieters hissed.

The man grinned. "I will, but not without the book."

Mr. Pieters managed to evade the monster that tried to attack him and started running again. For a man soon in his seventies, he had a very good health and condition.

He managed to hide in another alley, just for a few minutes, and look at his book. He sighed. He would have to do it. If he by some miracle would survive, he could go and get it back.

"Travel to safety," he whispered.

The book turned to dust and disappeared in the wind. He peeked around the corner of the alley and saw the monster smelling the air. He braced himself and started running again. But he was stopped by the two Cleavers. He turned around to the sound of the clearing of a throat. The man came up next to the monster with a grin that soon faded away when he saw that the book was gone.

"What did you to with it?" he hissed.

"I sent it to somewhere you won't ever find it," Mr. Pieters said.

The man started grinning again. "Let me guess – to that granddaughter of yours? What is she now? Sixteen? Hasn't she stopped believing in magic?" he said.

"They'll know you did it. They'll find it out and they'll take you down," Mr Pieters said.

Now, the man laughed. It was a cold laugh, without any actual joy. "Is that what you think? I _work_ for them! They'll never find it out!"

"They might not, but _he_ will," Mr Pieters said.

The man snorted. "What does _he _know?" he spat. "He'll just wander around, with his little side-kick and hope that he finds something. But believe me. There won't be any proof." He raised his hand. "Now, tell me. Where is the book? I might even spare the girl."

Mr. Pieters shook his head. "I won't tell you. If he can't get to you, then I'm telling you – she sure will and when she has, she will have absolutely no mercy on you."

"Fine," the man said. "I'll find it myself."

It started from the heart and spread out to the rest of his body – a cold that was completely unable to describe. It wasn't painful in any way, just cold.

Adam Edward Antonius Pieters died with a smile on his lips.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:  
**Gains and Losses**

Abigail stood at the grave and watched the coffin being lowered into the hole. Her hair was put up in a little bun on the back of her head with small strands of her hair hanging down the sides of her face. She was wearing a black dress that reached down to her knees and had little black rose at the left shoulder strap of it.

Tears ran down her cheeks as she grabbed a handful of dirt and threw it down on the coffin.

"I'll miss you, grandpa," she whispered. Then she walked away.

Abigail was a simple girl. She wasn't much taller than the average girl and she wasn't that very different from the others. She was blonde with blue eyes that she had inherited from her mother. She was beautiful, though, and a very pretty girl. She had some odd interests compared to the others, though – she practiced Tai Chi, Kendo and Taekwondo. Her mother had put her in Taekwondo just so that Abigail could be able to defend herself if there would be any trouble. Though, when it came to Tai Chi and Kendo, it was Abigail's own initiative that got her to those two "sports". She had no problem if she would have to fight, but she rarely used it unless she was practicing. She danced as well, mostly ballet and ballroom dance, but also other couple dances. She wasn't as passionate about it as she was with the Kendo, for example.

She walked across the graveyard and came up to a tombstone where it said: 

Here Lies  
Pamela Carson

1993-2010

Beloved Friend and Daughter

Abigail sighed and sat down. Pamela was an old friend that had died in a car accident when she was just seventeen. It was probably the worst day of Abigail's life.

"Hi, Pam," she said. "I know that I wasn't supposed to come back here for at least five years unless I was going to bring flowers. But here I am. Grandpa died. Heart attack, they say. It sounds a bit odd, doesn't it? A sixty-nine year-old man that runs half a mile every morning drops dead by a heart attack? I don't think so!" She couldn't help but to snicker a bit as she wiped off another tear. "I'm gonna try stay away from funerals for another five years and we'll see if I can keep it this time. And next time, I won't wear any make-up – I keep ruining it."

She sighed and looked around. A man was walking a bit further away. He looked very strange – he wore a long coat, a scarf that covered his mouth and nose, a pair of big sunglasses and a wide hat that was pulled down far over his forehead. Under the hat, a bush of brown hair stuck out that looked so fake that Abigail wondered if he was some spy.

He was walking towards her and when he reached her, he reached out his hand to her. He wore white gloves that stuck out from the hole in the sleeve.

"You must be Abigail," he said.

His voice could've been made out of silk. Abigail grabbed his hand and he pulled her up.

"Excuse me, but do I know you?" she said.

"No," the man said. "But I was a friend of your grandfather's. Skulduggery Pleasant. I'm very sorry for your loss. He was a great man."

Abigail nodded. "He was."

"It was nice to meet you, Abigail, but I must go," Skulduggery said and walked away.

When he was out of sight, Abigail looked at the tombstone next to her. "Did you see that?" she said.

"Abby!" someone shouted. Her mother came walking over the graveyard to Abigail.  
"Abby," she said. "C'mon. It's time for dinner," she said.

"Do I have to? Everybody's so ignorant. They're acting as if grandpa didn't even exist and act as if they were ruling the world," Abigail whined.

"I know, honey, but you at least have to get something to eat."

She sighed. "Fine…"

It was like a little convoy of cars that were driving to the mansion that Adam Pieters lived in. The dinner was like Abigail had expected – aunt Margaret on her father's side was walking around with pouting lips, picking in the food on her plate. Her husband, Bill, was a lot kinder; he was at least smiling and apologizing for the loss of Adam as he walked around. One of Abigail's two cousins, Kathryn, was practically acting as if she was a queen while Eric, Abigail's favourite cousin, was actually mourning. Almost everybody on Abigail's mother's side (except for her mother) was a bit snobby, while the people on her father's side, like Eric and his mother Miriam, were much kinder.

Abigail just ate a little fruit before she left the dinner and walked down the little corridor down the right front side of the mansion. There were big windows down the wall that showed the beautiful garden in the front yard and let the sun shine in down on the floor. There were beautiful paintings hanging on the wall and some small statues and empty armours along the corridor, all of them remembered by Abigail.

She got to the company room where there was a comfortable couch accompanied by a chair and a table. She looked at the shelves. They were still filled with books.

She pulled her hand over the backs of the books and smiled when she found certain titles that she remembered that her grandfather had read to her.

She heard someone behind her and turned around. Skulduggery Pleasant stood there, looking down at the pages of a book. He looked up at her.

"Mr. Pleasant," Abigail said.

"Please, please. Call me Skulduggery," he said. "You've grown so much."

She blinked. "I thought you hadn't met me before," she said.

"I haven't. I've only seen you on photographs. Adam told me a lot about you. You were so small, but you've grown a lot. You look like a woman now," he said.

Abigail blushed and looked down. "Th-Thanks. I guess…"

Skulduggery put the book away and sighed. "Well, I'd better get going. I have a lot of things to do. It was very nice to meet you again. Something tells me that we're sure to meet again," he said before he turned around and left Abigail alone.

She watched him disappear before she sunk down in the couch. Then she noticed something. There was a vase with magnolias on the table. They had been there all the time, but there was something else that hadn't. There was a little card in the flowers. Abigail grabbed it and looked at it – it was a business card. On it were golden, cursive letters and a logo that was a skull with a hat on a shield. Above it, it said:  
"Skulduggery Pleasant." Underneath the logo it said something else: "The Munchkin Army."

Abigail blinked. "What's the Munchkin Army?" she mumbled.

"Abigail?" she heard someone say.

She looked over her shoulder and saw her father in the opening. "Hi, dad," she said and hid the card.

"C'mon," he said. "Let's go home."

Abigail stood up and walked through the corridor with her father, but she was walking slightly behind. She was looked at the business card that she found. The sunlight was shimmering in the golden letters, reflecting it in her face. When they got out, she hid the card again and got in the car with her parents.

It took an hour to get home from the mansion, so by the time they got home, it was a relief to get out of the car. The first thing Abigail did when she came in was to go up the stairs and into her bedroom.

She sunk down in her bed and sighed. She heard the phone ringing downstairs and how her mother went to answer it.

She looked at the business card that she had been hiding in the palm of her hand during the ride home. She turned it over and looked at the back of it. There wasn't anything else printed on it. No phone number or address. Just the strange logo, Skulduggery's name and the name of that strange army.

Suddenly, she heard someone knocking on the door. She slid the card in under her pillow and looked up as the door opened.

"Abby," her mother said and stuck in her head through the opening. "The reading of the will is tomorrow at noon. Don't sleep too long."

"I won't," Abigail said and smiled.

Her mother smiled back at her. Abigail looked a lot like her. The same hair, the same eyes and the same smile. Abigail had mostly just inherited her behaviour from her father – plus that piercing glimpse in her eyes that she could get sometimes when she was determined or angry.

When her mother closed the door, she stood up and changed clothes. She pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a simple grey T-shirt. She let loose her hair and let it fall down over her shoulder. She pulled her fingers through it and lay down. She pulled out the card from under the pillow and looked at it again. Maybe she could search for The Munchkin Army on the internet?

Just when the thought struck her, she yawned. _Maybe tomorrow…_ she thought.

She put the card in her drawer and looked at the clock. It was a little over half past seven and she was already this tired. She usually stayed up till in the middle of the night, but funerals apparently took the energy out of her.

She closed her eyes and it didn't take long before she started to get drowsy.

_Just… a few… hours…_


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N Yes, I know that it has been like forever since I uploaded last time, but don't worry, I'll try to make good time and I'll try to get along with my computer.**

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Chapter 2:  
**A New Home**

When Abigail woke up, she heard the phone ringing downstairs. She looked at the clock. Eleven in the morning. She sat up and yawned. She enjoyed that first minute of the morning when she didn't remember anything. But when it all came, she remembered the funeral and that her grandfather was gone.

She sighed. But then she also remembered that mysterious man, Skulduggery Pleasant. She lifted her pillow to grab the card she got from him, but it wasn't there.

_Oh, right!_ she thought and opened the drawer. There it was. She picked it up and looked at the golden letters. The Munchkin Army. Her computer was right there in the corner. She could just turn it on, search for the name on the internet and see if something came up.

She sat down in front of it, turned it on and waited. It didn't take more than maybe five minutes before it was completely finished and she could start searching.

"The Munchkin Army," she said as she wrote it.

There were many results with articles about revolution, mythological creatures and Area 51, but nothing that seemed to be worth the attention. So she searched for Skulduggery Pleasant. This time she got many results with facts about the human skeleton and articles about Kama Sutra.

She sighed and leaned back in the chair. She looked at the card again. Not only did The Munchkin Army sound like something from a science-fiction story, but the name Skulduggery Pleasant was the strangest name she had ever heard.

There was a knock on the door and Abigail hid the card in her hand. Then she quickly shut down the internet before her mother came in.

"Abby?" she said. "You should start getting dressed. Breakfast's ready."

"I'm coming," Abigail said and smiled.

Her mother smiled back at her before she closed the door.

Abigail sighed. She looked at the card again and shook her head. Then she put it back in the drawer and walked out from the bedroom and down the stairs to the kitchen to eat some breakfast. Her father was reading the newspaper with a frown on his face.

"Can you believe this?" he asked his wife. "Five murders in one week."

"Honey, let's not talk about it over breakfast, ok?"

He sighed. "Sorry. I sometimes just wonder where this city is going," he said and put the newspaper away.

Abigail just ate her cereal silently, ready to just get it over with.

When she was finished, she walked up the stairs to take a shower. She washed her hair and her face and scrubbed her back before she stepped out of the shower and went to her bedroom to get dressed. She didn't really know what to put on – all she knew was that she had already grown tired of black clothes. When she opened her closet, the first thing that caught her eye was a white blouse. She grabbed it and looked at it.  
"This'll probably do," she said to herself.

Then she looked in her drawer for a skirt or a pair of jeans to wear. She grabbed a denim skirt and a pair of tights that she pulled on. When she was finished, it was time to go. She brushed her hair quickly before she hurried to the hall and put on her shoes.

It didn't take more than fifteen minutes to get to the firm where the will was going to be read, and yet, when they got there, it seemed as if they were late.

"Finally!" aunt Margaret said.

"There you are," Bill said and smiled at them.

Everybody from the funeral was there. Kathryn still looked like she was the centre of the universe, with her too many layers of make-up that made her look just a little bit like a prostitute; Eric pulled his fingers through his red hair and gave them a wide smile when they came in and stood up to give Abigail a hug; a few of Abigail's parents cousins and her mother's own uncles and aunts – all ready for the reading of the will, eager to know what they had gotten.

"There's just one more," the lawyer said. "He should be here any minute."

"But can't we begin without him?" aunt Miriam asked softly. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"Don't worry," a silky voice from the door said.

Abigail turned around and saw Skulduggery Pleasant walk in to the room.

"I didn't know I was late. There must be something wrong with my watch," he said and stood next to her.

"You're not late at all," the lawyer said. "I have just been dealing with impatient people."

Abigail couldn't see it, but she got a feeling that Skulduggery was smiling. He turned his head just a bit to the side and she knew that he looked at her.

"Abigail," he said with a nod.

"Skulduggery," she said and smiled politely.

"So, shall we start then?" the lawyer said and looked at the paper in front of him. He started reading: "'My ever so beloved family, both by blood and flesh and you who are married to those of my blood and flesh – I hope that my assets will bring much happiness to all of you and that you won't feel too sorry about my death. I have made sure that everything is fair and if you don't like it, you can't complain, because there's no one to complain to.'" Abigail couldn't help but to smile a bit. Even Skulduggery next to her let out a quiet chuckle. "'I will start with my older brother, who has been a great role-model for me.'"

He started with all of his siblings first. They all got some of Adam's antique furniture and none of them seemed to think badly of it – His older brother smiled widely when he had inherited his brother's two old Bentleys from 1933 and 1939. His younger sister pulled a pleased gasp and put her hands together with a big smile when she found out that she would get Adam's old grandpa-clock and a pair of earrings that he had never had the chance to give her on her 55:th birthday – she was now 61. His youngest brother who had just turned 50 (which Abigail thought was quite young considering that he was her soon-to-be 40 year old mother's uncle) stared wide-eyed at the lawyer when he got Adam's old boat, the Rolling Stone and a very old and antique – still functional – compass to "guide him out on the open sea". But aunt Margaret wasn't as happy. She and her husband Bill got all of Adam's cars, except for an Aston Martin. But Bill was happy – _he_ also got Adam's researches to finish. He had always found Adam to be a charismatic scientist and had helped him many times. Aunt Miriam and Eric got Adam's summer place in Glasgow, all paid rents for a year in an apartment for Eric when he was going to move out and a million pounds, something that they didn't quite seem to have anything against at all. Then it was Abigail's family's turn. They got a summer place in Kilkenny, a million pound as well and a scholarship for Abigail when she was going to start whatever college she wanted. But it didn't end there.

"'Now, Abigail, you will get something just for you. I saved that Aston Martin just for you and you will also the rights to the mansion when you turn 18 with all the books and all the LPs in it. Until then, your parents owns it. You will get to decorate yourself, though – I know that you didn't like some of the furniture in there. You will also get a book that is all for you. It should be in your mailbox right now. Don't let anyone else snoop around in it – it's just yours.'"

Abigail was speechless. But the lawyer continued reading. "'Skulduggery Pleasant. My friend no matter what. My good man Leonard who takes care of my cars will now work for you. The poor thing would have to leave Ireland if he didn't have a job. That Bentley of yours will look even better than it ever did before – he can work miracles when it comes to cars. You will also special surprise from me – check your bank deposit. I think you'll like it.'" The lawyer put down the paper. "That concludes the will."

"_She_ got the mansion?" Kathryn said sceptically. Even though she was closing in on her twenties she was very immature.

"She was, after all, his favourite grandchild, am I not right?" Skulduggery said with a tone of sarcasm and turned his head to me. "Congratulations."

"Thanks, congratulations to you, too," Abigail said. "I hope Leonard won't be too much trouble. Believe me, he'll insist on you changing a bunch of things in the engine for it to drink less gas and stuff."

"If something happens with your new car, just give me a call and I'll get him to fix it," he said and Abigail got that feeling again that told her that he smiled. "I can also help you with fixing the mansion, if you want."

"No, I think it'll work out," she said.

"Good." He reached out his hand to her. She grabbed it and shook it. "Good bye, then. I must get going."

He left the room and Eric stood up to give Abigail another hug. "I'm so happy for you, Abby," he said. "I hope that you'll let me crash from time to time though. I mean, I _am_ after all your cousin." He grinned at her.

"Sure, as long as you don't bring any girlfriends over," she said and grinned back at him.

Her parents gave her hugs as well. "Now you have your own place, honey!" her mother said.

"Yeah, how about that? Only two years from now, you'll have a mansion!" her father said and put a strand of her hair behind her ear.

Abigail smiled. "Can we go and check it out?" she said.

"I have work to do, honey," her father said.

"I can drive you there, but then I'll have to get to the hospital to check on one of my patients," her mother said.

"I think I'll survive," Abigail said.

It took an hour to drive to the mansion, but it was worth it. Carla, the maid, was still there.

"Hello, Abby," she said with an American accent.

"Hi, Carla. How are you?" Abigail asked.

"Just fine. I'm going to be _your_ maid when you move here, you know. And I got inherit a gift that Adam had intended to give to that woman in Glasgow," she said and smiled.

"Wow. Maybe there's a little hint to it, if you know what I mean," Abigail said and winked.

Carla laughed. "I wish. I'm at the age where I'm not as desirable among men as I used to be. I was just on my way home. Maybe I can stay for a while, if you want to," she said.

"No, no, it's ok," Abigail said. "Go home and get some rest. I can come back and have something to eat with you some day."

"Yeah, sure," Carla said and smiled. "Good bye."

"Bye-bye."

Carla left and now Abigail was all alone in this big mansion. Maybe it would get too lonely when she was going to move in there…


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

**It Runs in the Family**

It was so empty. Usually, Adam would've greeted her out on the yard, given her a hug and take her inside to have something to eat. But now... there was no one here. Carla would still have to work even though no one lived here.

She looked around and tried to fight back the tears, but she failed. She sat down on the floor and hugged her legs as she started crying. She had been the one to hold Adam dearest and the one to look up to him when everyone else thought him to be an old man who had seen better days.

When she thought she heard something, she stopped and looked around. She let out a quiet sob and wiped off the tears before she said:  
"Hello? Is anyone here?"

When she didn't hear anything else, she figured that her mind was playing tricks on her and stood up. She walked through the corridor on the side and looked at the paintings and armours. She stopped at a certain one - it was bigger than the others and the helmet looked a bit royal compared to the others. It had a claymore in the sheath on Abigail's right side and a long spear in its hand. Abigail smiled to herself. Adam had told her stories about this armour - that it was the armour of a great, royal knight named Derrick that had fought dragons, monsters and other dangerous beings. He had apparently died to save his best friend, who was a simple farmer's boy, but who also had a special ability to turn himself invisible. At first, Adam had said that it was the knight's beloved princess, but Abigail hadn't liked that outcome, so it got to be the knight's friend instead.

Abigail put her hand on the chest of the armour and felt the cold steel against her skin. She remembered that as a child, she had gotten a small crush on the Derrick in the stories, even though she knew that he wasn't real.

She sighed and moved on to the company room. The flowers were still on the table in front of the couch and the fire-place was looking very inviting to her. She crouched in front of it and put in some firewood. She grabbed the matchbox in the bucket of firewood and lit up a fire. It took a while before it actually started burning, but when it did, it warmed Abigail's face up and lit up the room, even though it was bright outside. She sat down in the couch and looked at the books in the shelves. One certain book caught her eye - a photo album that she had never seen before. She stood up and walked up to it. She grabbed it and looked at the cover.

It was made in black velvet and had golden, cursive letters that reminded Abigail of the business card that Skulduggery gave her. It said, "Memories with Friends". She went back to sit down in the couch and put the album in her lap. She opened it and arched her eyebrow at the first photograph. It was a photo of two smiling women at a bar, both with glasses of beer in their hands. One of them had black hair and dark tanned skin. Her eyes were brown and her entire, heart-shaped face was set for a wide, friendly smile towards whoever took the picture. The other had an Asian look to her, with hazel-brown hair and eyes dark enough to seem black. She had round, soft cheekbones and a piercing in her nose. Underneath it, it said:

"Mei and Brooklyn sharing some drinks in 1977."

Abigail flipped the page and looked at three more photos. The first was an old photo of Adam in a suit outside a restaurant. Next to him was a beautiful blonde woman that Abigail figured was the woman that he had met in Glasgow.

"I wish I was that young again... Me and Karen in 1963."

Abigail smiled - Adam looked pretty handsome when he was young. On the right page were two pictures. The top one was of Abigail when she was about five. She had that wide grin that kids usually had when they discover something that they realized was the funniest thing they've ever experienced in their lives.

"Abigail, a few weeks before she turned five."

When she moved her gaze to the photo underneath, she was a bit surprised. A wrinkle formed between her eyebrows and this one, single question formed in her head:  
_How old can he possibly be?_

It was a picture of Adam in the same suit as the on the picture with Karen, only this time, he was standing next to Skulduggery Pleasant, who wore the same things he had done when Abigail saw him. Adam had a big grin on his face, but since it wasn't possible to see Skulduggery's face, it wasn't possible to tell if he was as happy. But he had about the same body language as Adam, so Abigail assumed that he was as happy as Adam. Under the picture, it said:  
"Skulduggery joined us for dinner – charming, as always!"

When Abigail looked at the next page, she got surprised and confused. The photo was of Abigail when she was two, sitting in Adam's lap and playing with the hand of a skeleton. A skeleton in a handsome, black suit and a hat. When she read the text below it, her face turned into a mix between horror and disbelief. It said:  
"Abby always likes playing with Skulduggery's hands."

Abigail stared at the skeleton on the photo. At first, she thought that it was just a joke – that the skeleton on the picture was just a fake. But then she looked at the name and wondered why someone would put a man named after a fake skeleton on the will.

On the next photo, the skeleton was holding her in his arms, pointing towards the camera while looking at the smiling face of Abigail.

"Abby's finds Skulduggery more amusing than the camera!" it said underneath.

_Ok, maybe not so fake..._ she thought and closed the album.

She put it on the table and felt a bit like she had been tricked. Should she call her parents? Not now, they were too busy. She couldn't call any of her friends – she didn't have their numbers in her head and she didn't have her cell phone with her.

Suddenly, someone rang the door bell. Abigail flinched and hurried out to the hall. She opened the door and when she saw the man standing outside, she regretted that she didn't close it instantly. It probably wouldn't help that much though – the man was huge, practically twice Abigail's own size. Even though he hadn't done or said anything yet, Abigail had a bad feeling about this.

The man looked slightly surprised, even though he kept the tough and ill-willed expression on his face.

"Who are you?" he snarled at her.

Abigail flinched at his voice. "I-I'm the owner of this house," she said and tried her best to prevent her voice from quivering.

The man leaned in for a closer look at her. "No, you're not," he said – his voice was so deep that it felt like the ground was vibrating.

"Yes, I am," Abigail persisted. "When I turn 18, I own the legal rights to this house."

The man now grinned and there was a dark glimpse in his eye. "Which means that you're not the owner _yet_," he said.

Before Abigail could say anything else, the man's fist slammed into her stomach and sent her flying far enough to hit the bottom of the stairs. Abigail coughed and tried to stand up. But then, the man took a grip of her throat and lifted her up against the wall. She gasped for air and tried to kick the man where it hurts, but she couldn't.

"Where's the book?" he asked.

Abigail clawed his hand. "I-I-I don't know what you're talking about!" she whined as she slowly started to panic – she could barely breathe and now, the man tightened the grip around her throat.

"Then you're no use to me," he said and pushed her harder against the wall.

Abigail felt how she slowly slipped out of consciousness and she started to feel tired. Her muscles stopped doing what she told them to and soon, she had no energy left in her to fight with.

Suddenly, there was a loud bang and the man screamed, losing his grip of her throat. He threw her against the wall and turned towards whoever just arrived.

"I knew you'd come eventually, but I didn't think you'd come so soon," he growled.

"Am I supposed to know you?" a familiar, silky voice said from the door way.

Another shot was fired and Abigail saw the contours of the man stumble back a few steps. She was so close to going unconscious every looked and sounded like it was in the distance. But even though she was practically out of it, she saw that the man took probably ten shots to the chest and still stood straight. A figure then ran up to him and started punching him hard in the stomach. Then it gave him a hard uppercut that probably could've knocked the man's head off. But the man punched the newcomer in the stomach like he had with Abigail and sent the opponent flying through the hall. Then he turned to Abigail and walked over to her. He lifted her up by grabbing the collar of her blouse and looked at her. She whimpered and tried to focus on his face.

"The owner of this house, huh?" he said straight in her face. "You? I can find more fight in a rat."

Abigail now focused all her energy on her leg. She charged it and then kicked the man straight in the groin. He groaned and let her go. She managed to stand up and watched as he stumbled back. She started to regain her energy and hoped that she would manage to stand off against this humongous man.

"I don't think rats can do that," she said and tried to make a good punch like in Taekwondo, but it ended up being just an ordinary punch – better than nothing.

Even though she might have gotten the strength to fight back in her, she still wasn't strong enough to fend off _his_ punches. He slammed the back of his fist against her face, causing her to fall backwards. When she hit the floor, she heard a shot and the man screamed. But it suddenly stopped and when Abigail looked up, she saw that a skeleton in a handsome black suit and a hat had pierced the man's chest with a kitchen knife. The man collapsed and the skeleton sighed before it turned to Abigail. He hurried two steps up to her and kneeled next to her.

"Abigail? Abigail, can you hear me?" a silky voice said as the skeleton's lower jaw moved a bit.

Then, as she felt a hand on her cheek, she passed out.

She woke up with a flinch. She was lying in Adam's bed. When she sat up, she felt that her jaw hurt and then it all came rushing back to her. She got out of bed, snuck down the stairs, got to the company room and grabbed the fire iron. Then she quietly hurried through the corridor and when she heard something in the kitchen, she snuck through the hall and was prepared for an attack.

There, at the counter, stood the skeleton with the black suit. The hat was on the kitchen table. She couldn't quite tell what it was doing, but it seemed very concentrated. Abigail raised the fire iron above her head and then charged against the stranger. It heard her steps and turned around just in time to block her attack. It grabbed her wrist and pulled the fire iron out of her hand and threw it on the floor.

"Abigail, calm down!"

"You're a skeleton!" Abigail screamed and wriggled out of the grip. "You're a skeleton named Skulduggery Pleasant who says that he has never met me before, but then I see pictures in an album that I never knew existed and see _you_, a skeleton, with me and my grandfather!"

Skulduggery sighed. "I can explain that, Abigail, but you'll have to-"

"How the hell is this possible?" Abigail screamed. "You and grandpa were friends? _My grandpa, Adam Pieters, was friends with a living skeleton?_"

"Abigail!" Skulduggery shouted and grabbed her shoulders. "Calm down!"

Abigail stared straight into the empty eye sockets and started to feel the panic overpower the rage.

When he spoke once more, his voice was soft and silky again and he sounded a bit amused.

"Right now, I don't know why it is you're screaming at me – is it because I lied about not meeting you or is it because it actually turns out that I'm a living skeleton that has known you for a very long time?" he said.

Abigail blinked. "You said that you had an explanation," she mumbled.

Skulduggery let his hands slip off her shoulders and leaned his head a bit to the side.

"I met Adam a while back. He was about your age and he happened to see me fight off some thugs. He wasn't a bit scared about the fact that I was a living, talking skeleton. We actually became quite good friends and eventually, he wanted me to teach him some... tricks. Magic, to be exact," Skulduggery said.

Abigail raised her eyebrows. "Magic?"

"Yes," Skulduggery said and leaned back against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest. "He was a very good Sorcerer. He had a lot to learn, but it didn't seem to stop him. Although, his other friends didn't like that he spent any time with me – during those times, like World War 2, I was a very fishy type. I never met his children, but when Anne gave birth to you, he just had to let me meet you. I told him that I would probably just give you nightmares, but he was very consistent. The first time we actually met was shortly after your first birthday. Of course, just like any child, you were a bit shy at first, but then you starting playing with my fingers. You seemed to be very amused by them." Skulduggery pulled off his white glove and looked at his own hand. "I haven't seen you since you were five," he added. "But oh, well."

"B-B-But magic? Grandpa could do magic?" Abigail said.

"Yes. It's not that unusual. It runs in the family," Skulduggery said with a shrug.

"In the family? You mean like a bloodline?"

"Nnno, more like in the genes. To be able to do magic, you need a related to be able to do magic."

"Can I do magic?" Abigail asked and actually felt a bit excited.

Skulduggery froze and she had a feeling that he was looking at her. Then he sighed.

"I should've seen that one coming..." he mumbled. "Listen, Abigail, if you want to learn how to do magic – sure. I'll help you with the basics, but no more. But I need you to give me the book that Adam gave to you in the will."

Abigail blinked. She had completely forgotten about the book.

"Uh... tomorrow. Mum and Dad will be working so you can just come and pick me up," she said.

"Pick _you_ up? No, Abigail. I'm just going to take the book," Skulduggery said.

Abigail glared at him. "You say that you've known me practically my whole life. Now, you come and kill a big, homicidal man, you tell me that my grandpa knew how to do magic and that I can do it too. The book was given to _me_ and so, you're not taking that book anywhere without me," she said.

Skulduggery looked at her for a few seconds before he sighed again. "I have a friend that I think you'll like.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

**China Doll**

"So how does this magic thing work?"

Abigail was sitting in the passenger's seat in Skulduggery's Bentley while they drove into town. Skulduggery gave her a glance.

"The things that Adam taught you... you've completely forgotten about them, but I think that somehow, subconsciously, you know how to do it," he said.

Abigail looked at him. "How is that supposed to help?" she said sceptically.

Skulduggery looked back at her. "I don't know. I was hoping that it would make something happen," he said ironically. Then he added, "I'm saying that you need a trigger. Anything. Adam was a Mage and he tried to teach you Mage's magic, so I don't think that you'll be any good with Elemental magic."

"But why did he stop?" Abigail asked.

Skulduggery seemed to hesitate – it was hard to tell since he didn't have a face. But then he said:  
"The last time I met you, Adam told me that he had visited the Sanctuary to talk to the Elders. They had heard that he was training a child in the arts of magic. They didn't like that. They said that you could easily lose control at that age. They _forbid_ him to train you."

Abigail looked down at her lap. "So... what you're telling me is... technically, I already know how to use magic?" she said.

Skulduggery shrugged. "If you want to look at it that way, sure," he said. "Now, that book that Adam gave you – we're going to need a key to open it, so I'm going to check with my friend to see if she might have any clues to where it might be."

"I want to come with you," Abigail said when they pulled in at a parking lot.

Skulduggery looked at her. "I swear to God, sometimes I feel I'm having a déjà vu," he mumbled as he got out of the car.

Abigail followed him and when she closed the door, Skulduggery pressed a button on the car keys and the car locked with a _beep_.

"Is that-"

"It's a very good alarm!" Skulduggery interrupted with an irritated tone and walked across the parking lot.

Abigail hurried after him and walked with him to a building. They walked inside and Abigail felt a little uncomfortable when she saw the old men inside eyeing her as she followed Skulduggery up the stairs.

"Ignore them," Skulduggery mumbled to her.

"Is this the friend you thought I would like?" Abigail said when they got to the third floor.

"No, this is another friend," Skulduggery said. "A friend you _shouldn't_ like."

Abigail now noticed that they had gotten to a library on the top floor. It surprised her, because it really didn't look like it belonged there.

Skulduggery knocked on a door that was at the end of all the walls filled with book shelves. It opened and a short man stood inside, staring at them.

"I... _we're_ here to see China," Skulduggery said and took off his hat.

The man let them in and what first struck Abigail was the scent. It was very enjoyable and Abigail took a very deep breath to really feel it. But then, a soft voice spoke:  
"You've brought a friend?"

Abigail looked at the direction Skulduggery was and saw the most beautiful woman she ever thought could exist. Her skin was like porcelain and her eyes were so intense and cold – she looked like a china doll. Then Abigail realized the irony in the woman's name and felt a bit embarrassed that she didn't think of it before.

China smiled at Abigail and Abigail felt how she just wanted to stay and just stare at this woman's beauty.

But Skulduggery covered up her eyes with his hand and said:  
"Stop it."

When he uncovered Abigail's eyes, she didn't feel as drawn to China, but the "attraction" was still there.

China stood up and walked over to her. She stroke her cheek and smiled again.

"You're not planning on getting yet another sidekick, are you?" she said softly. "I would gladly take her in under my own care."

Skulduggery grabbed China by the wrist. "Don't even think about it," he said.

China arched an eyebrow at him. "You weren't as protective with Valkyrie the first time you brought her here," she said.

"Because I didn't need to," Skulduggery said – Abigail was surprised at the chill in his voice.

China broke out of his grip and went to sit down again. "What's on your heart?"

"Remember the book that a certain Mr. Pieters wanted to keep in protection here in your library?" Skulduggery said.

China looked slightly surprised. "Oh, that. If I knew that it would become that important, I of course would've helped him," she said. "Weren't you friends?"

"You don't happen to know about the key?" Skulduggery asked, ignoring the question.

China smirked. "I've heard of it, but I've never seen it," she said. "If you want to know about its whereabouts, there's a rumour going that he either took it with him in the grave or he hid it somewhere in the mansion."

"I sure hope he hid it in the mansion..." Abigail mumbled to Skulduggery.

"I agree," Skulduggery mumbled back.

"You're looking for the key?" China said curiously.

"Yes," Skulduggery said. "Another one of those... 'save-the-world'-things."

Abigail gave Skulduggery a confused glance while China snickered. "Then I hope that it will work out just fine," she said.

Skulduggery put on his hat again and turned to the door. Abigail followed him, but then China cleared her throat and they both turned around to look at her.

"You know... the offer still stands," she said to Abigail.

"What offer?" Abigail said.

Skulduggery put his hand at her shoulder and pushed her in front of him. "Let's go," he said, sounding a bit hostile.

When they got back to the car, Abigail grabbed Skulduggery by the wrist and pulled him to a stop.

"Save the world?" she said.

"Well, yes," Skulduggery said as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

"B-B-But you said nothing about the world needing to be saved!" Abigail said.

Skulduggery shrugged. "I didn't think I had to," he said and got to the other side of the car.

"S-So you need the book to save the world?" Abigail said.

"If that's how you want to put it, then yes," Skulduggery said and got in the car.

Abigail got in the passenger's seat and looked at Skulduggery. "This book... what's in it?" she asked.

Skulduggery looked shortly at her before he started the car and drove out from the parking lot. He inhaled (which was a very odd sight) and eventually said:  
"When I first started teaching him how to use magic, he took notes. He wrote down absolutely everything. How to do it, how it felt, how it looked and what kind of effect it had. After a few years, when he was about 25 or so, he realized something. Without the mortal world, the magic world wouldn't be able to exist and the other way around."

"So... if the magic world hadn't existed, the mortal world wouldn't have existed either?" Abigail asked.

"Oh, it would exist, but it wouldn't work out. They balance each other out," Skulduggery said. "Once your grandpa found that out, he started to do... calculations and experiments. What he figured out was... beyond anyone's imagination."

"What did he figure out?" Abigail asked with a whisper.

"He figured out how one world could survive without the other. If it ends up with someone who isn't too fond of the people of the mortal world..."

"We're screwed," Abigail said.

"That's... _one_ way to put it, yes," Skulduggery said.

Abigail pulled up her legs to her chest and hugged them. She couldn't believe it. From what she knew, it felt like she had just been at the wrong place at the wrong time. She stared out the window and saw the buildings pass by in a high speed. It wasn't dark yet, but the sun was setting.

"Are you ok?" Skulduggery asked. Abigail just nodded. "Look," Skulduggery started, "I know it might feel like a lot to go through. I mean, you've just learned that I've known you since you were a baby, that magic exists, that Adam tried to teach you magic and that the book that you have inherited is something that could end the world as we know it – in one day. But don't worry, you and all your friends and your family will be safe."

Abigail glared at him. "What do you mean by that?" she said.

"I mean that you don't have to worry about the world ending," Skulduggery said. "Just let me and my friend take care of it."

"Hell no," Abigail said. Skulduggery looked at her, probably shocked. "I'm going to help you," she said.

If he could, he probably would've blinked. Then he mumbled something that sounded like a swear and looked out on the street.

"It's just like déjà vu..." he mumbled and shook his head in discourage. Then he looked at Abigail. "Fine. I'll do what I can to help you find the trigger of your magic, the rest is up to you. But don't _ever_ try to be heroic – it'll just get us all in trouble."

Abigail arched her eyebrow. "You sound just like Mum," she said.

Skulduggery did a movement with his head that Abigail figured was him rolling with his... eyes.

"Just promise me," he said.

"I promise," Abigail said innocently. "I'll do my best."

"Good. I'm going to take you home now. I'll pick you up at your house tomorrow – don't forget to take the book with you," Skulduggery said.

They had gotten to the path that led to the mansion. When they reached the house, Abigail figured that she wouldn't be able to fall asleep – after all that had happened today, she would have too much on her mind to relax.

"See you tomorrow," Abigail said as she got out of the car.

Skulduggery gave her a nod and drove away. Abigail hurried up to the mansion and when she got inside, she made sure to lock the door properly and then she walked out to the company room to get the photo album. When she found it there on the table where she left it, she grabbed it and then walked up to the bedroom. She lay down in the bed and opened the album. She stared a bit at the photo with her and Skulduggery before she flipped the page. The next photo was a normal family photo with Abigail's parents, her cousin Eric and Adam. She figured that she couldn't be older than six on this picture – the last time she remembered she wore a pink bathing suit with dolphins on was when she was in swimming school.

The following five photos were like that – pretty family pictures of birthday parties, holidays and so on. But then more pictures of only Abigail showed up. What she found disturbing was that on half of them, Skulduggery sat on a chair or stood next to Adam. On one picture, Skulduggery was holding Abigail in his arms, hugging her as he let Abigail play with his hat. Next to it was a short text:

"Skulduggery came to visit the little private birthday party I held for Abigail when she turned five. Carla and I made sure that she was entertained until Skulduggery came. His arrival was the highlight of the day."

Abigail looked at it for a while. When she looked at her face on the picture, she couldn't see anything but pure happiness. She had really adored Skulduggery as a kid. Abigail couldn't help but to get a little curious and wonder how she had reacted when Skulduggery never came back. Had she gotten devastated? Had she cried and screamed in disbelief? Maybe that was why Abigail didn't remember the name Skulduggery Pleasant and the skeleton. It seemed a bit strange otherwise, if she didn't remember a living skeleton that she seemed to absolutely adore above anything else.

On the next page was Abigail, holding her hand over a couple of keys. She had to blink several times to make sure that she wasn't hallucinating – the keys were soaring just under the palm of her hand. Under the photo, it said:  
"Abigail has learned how to lift objects with wind, but I don't think that Elementary magic is the kind she should learn."

What surprised her even more was the photo after that. She was pointing her finger towards a lamp with a concentrated look on her face. Between the light bulb and her finger was a small, black, electric lightning filling up the little void. Next to it, big letters spelled out:  
"I'VE FOUND HER MAGIC!"

After that, there were no more pictures. The album ended there. Abigail closed it and thought for a while. On the bedside table was a small clock. She reached her hand towards it and concentrated hard. But nothing happened. Maybe it was too heavy – a clock weighed essentially more than a pair of keys.

She looked at the lamp over her head. She sat up straight and turned towards it. Skulduggery had said something about a trigger. What could possibly trigger something that she didn't know what it was? She reached out her hand towards the lamp and pointed her finger against the light bulb. She thought about different things. Sorrow, joy, depression, love, hate, rage, fear... she tried to make herself feel all those things, but it didn't quite work the way she wanted it to.

She gave up and put her head to the pillow. Just as she had suspected, she had too much in her head to go to sleep. She was very tired, but the things that had happened today had left too much of an imprint on her. But eventually, just like that, she fell asleep. But it wasn't easy on her.

"_Abby!"_

_She was in an entirely white room. She wore a long white dress with long frill and pearls that had been embroidered into the fabric covered her chest. When she turned around, a strangely familiar man stood there._

"_Grandpa?" she said._

_It was Adam from when he was a bit older than her. He walked over to her and grabbed her by her shoulders._

"_Abby, you have to listen to me," he said and stared straight into her eyes. "Dangerous things are about to happen!"_

"_Wh-What do you mean?" Abigail asked and put her hand on his arm._

"_When you have the book, don't _ever_ leave it out of your sight," Adam said. "Only trust Skulduggery."_

_Abigail nodded, slightly confused. "But grandpa," she said, feeling a bit strange to call this young man grandpa, "I don't understand. What's going on?"_

"_You are in a lot of trouble, Abby. It will be a while before you can feel safe. And even when you _can_ feel safe, you still have to be on your guard," Adam said._

_Suddenly, there was a sound behind him. When he turned around, a strange looking man attacked him and pierced his chest with a scythe. Abigail screamed and saw Adam's blood stain the suit. It looked like the blood spread out over the fabric, colouring the entire suit. Then the man just disappeared – turned into dust and just vanished._

_A pool of blood already spread out next to Adam. Abigail kneeled next to him and the blood that touched the dress did the same as it had with Adam's suit – it coloured it. Her entire dress turned red._

"_Grandpa!" she said and cupped her hands around his face._

"_A... Abby..." he whispered and cupped his hand around the back of her neck to pull her closer. "Th... The key... it's... it's in the..."_

_He couldn't finish the sentence, because when Abigail heard another sound and looked up, the man with the scythe was back. She screamed as it tried to attack her. Adam was no longer there – he had disappeared._

_The man lured her into a corner and when it raised the scythe over its head, she closed her eyes hard. But the cut never came. When she opened her eyes, she was somewhere else. She was naked, under water, but her body was wrapped in something that looked like silk. She looked around and saw sharks swimming around her._

_At first, she panicked, but then she noticed that they didn't really do anything. They were just swimming. A few of the sharks sometimes swam towards her, but turned away just next to her, close enough for her to touch them. She was a bit fascinated by them, almost hypnotized by them. But then she noticed that someone grabbed her hand and started pulling her up. The sharks followed, but didn't do anything more than that._

_When she got above the surface, China stood on the water. She pulled her up to her and held her close to her. She looked at her and said:_

"_Abigail."_

"_Yes?" she said._

_China looked around before she looked at her again. "You have to wake up."_


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

**Real Nightmares**

Abigail sat up before she even opened her eyes. She was breathing heavily and her heart was racing. She pulled her hand over her face and got out from the bed. She walked down the stairs and turned to the kitchen. She ate some breakfast and then she just waited for her mother to pick her up. She didn't have to wait as long as she had thought; just an hour or so.

"Are you ok?" Anne said when she saw her. "You look a bit pale."

"I'm ok. Just a bad dream," Abigail said and smiled.

"Oh, honey," Anne said and hugged her. "Let's go home."

They got in the car and drove down the path that led to the road. Anne gave Abigail a couple of troubled glances before she asked:  
"What happened with your neck?"

Abigail looked at her before she looked in the side-view mirror. Her neck was bruised. The blue-purple figure that vaguely looked like a hand reminded Abigail about the big man that attacked her at the mansion. How was she supposed to explain this?

"I... I don't know," she said as if she was riddled by it. "It wasn't there yesterday."

"What did you do yesterday?" Anne asked.

"Oh, nothing special," Abigail lied. "I... read a little bit and... yeah. Looked through some photo albums. By the way, did you get the book that I got from grandpa?"

"Yes, I took it in from the mailbox. I put it on your bed," Anne said. "Oh, Abby, I'll be home late today. I have a long shift."

"What about Dad?" Abigail asked.

"He won't be working longer than usual. I'm sure he'll be home by..." Anne looked at her watch, "I'd say by eight o'clock."

"Ok," Abigail said.

"You won't be lonely?" Anne asked with a smirk.

"No. I'll just call a friend and think of something," Abigail said and gave her mother a smile.

Anne smiled back at her and stopped at a red light. The rest of the ride was pretty silent. Abigail had too much in her mind to think of something to say to her mother and Anne was talking on the phone with her colleague most of the time. Abigail was thinking of what she should do when she was home. Should she get the book and leave immediately? Should she wait for Skulduggery to knock on the door? No, she should keep an eye out for him. That would be the best thing to do.

Then her mind spiralled into other thoughts – what was going to happen these upcoming days? What did "save the world" actually mean? How were they supposed to save the world? If this book was so dangerous in the wrong hands, wouldn't it be easier to just burn it and get done with it? What kind of parent names their child Skulduggery?

Anne's announcement of destination brought Abigail back to reality – they were home now.

"I'll just get my things, then I'll leave straight for work, ok?" Anne said as they got in the house.

"Ok," Abigail said and walked up to her room.

There, on the pillow in her bed, was a black, ordinary-looking book with strange decorations. It didn't look the way that she had expected – it looked more like a diary. It was about the size of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone", which actually surprised Abigail. It was bigger than she thought. It had a strange looking lock, though. It looked more like a buckle with a keyhole.

She picked it up and looked at it. It was heavier than it looked, too. The pages were worn out and the cover looked a bit old. It had probably been used very frequently since the front of the cover looked like it would fall off if she was to open it. The buckle that kept the book locked looked very strong and very endurable. The lock itself almost looked a bit out of place on it, even though it was probably a very good lock.

"See you tomorrow, sweetie!" Anne called from downstairs.

"Bye!" Abigail answered and waited until she heard the door close before she walked down the stairs and looked out the window.

She saw her mother drive away and waited a few minutes before she saw Skulduggery's Bentley arrive. She hurried out and opened the passenger door. When she got in, a girl leaned forward from the backseat and smiled at her. She had dark hair and couldn't be older than Abigail herself.  
"Hey there," she said.

"Hi," Abigail said.

"Valkyrie Cain," the girl said and reached out a hand to her.

Abigail grabbed it. "Nice to meet you, Valkyrie. "I'm-"

"You shouldn't say your real name," Valkyrie said. "If someone finds out your real name they can control you."

Abigail blinked. "O-Ok. So Valkyrie isn't your real name?" she said.

"No," Valkyrie said.

"How about I tell you my real name and you tell me yours?" Abigail said.

Valkyrie smiled. "Stephanie Edgley," she said.

"Abigail Pieters."

"Abby, just put your seatbelt on," Skulduggery said, who know had his disguise on.

Abigail did so and Skulduggery drove off.

"This is the first time I actually meet someone that Skulduggery actually used to know," Valkyrie said from the back.

"Yeah, well, I don't remember anything about him," Abigail said.

Skulduggery turned his head just a bit towards her, but not all the way. Then he turned his head back to the road and just continued driving. Valkyrie and Abigail had an interesting discussion about losing a relative, wills and how Skulduggery had showed up in both of their lives. Valkyrie seemed a bit jealous, though, since Abigail had met Skulduggery several years before.

"Skulduggery?" Abigail said after a while.  
"Yes?" he said.

"Where are we going?"

"To Ghastly's," Valkyrie said. "He's a tailor. He's the one who did Skulduggery's suit. And my clothes."

Abigail looked back at Valkyrie. "I like your clothes," she said.

Valkyrie snickered. "Thanks. Skul told me that you're going to join us, so I'm sure he can figure something out for you, too," she said.

Abigail smiled, a really wide, friendly grin. She hadn't smiled that way to anyone since Pamela died. Valkyrie did remind Abigail of Pamela a lot. Valkyrie smiled back at her and then pointed to the book.

"It's different from what I had imagined," she said.

Abigail looked at it. "Yeah, I thought so, too," she said.

"It's more of a notebook than anything else," Skulduggery said. "There's a bit of history, mathematical equations and instructions in it, all in one."

"You've read it?" Valkyrie asked.

"No, not really. But Adam had told me a little bit about it when he first figured everything out," Skulduggery said. "We're here."

When Abigail got out of the car, she saw where they were. It was one of those bad neighbourhoods where all the homeless people lived and the gangs hung out.

"Are you sure?" Abigail said.

Valkyrie sighed. "Believe me, I felt the same way the first time Skulduggery took me here, but don't worry. In a place like this, there's no risk that the mortal people barge in somewhere and discovers that magic actually exists," she said.

"Why keep it a secret?" Abigail said confused.

"Because not everyone would accept it as well as you," Skulduggery said as he walked up to the door of a small shop.

Valkyrie and Abigail followed him and when they stepped inside, Abigail was surprised of the interior. It looked like she had stepped straight into an old-fashioned tailor-shop that belonged in the early 1900s. It all looked so warm and welcoming.

Out from the backroom stepped a big man. His entire face was scarred, as well as his arms and hands. At first, Abigail stared at him with a horrified expression on her face, but then he gave her a gentle smile and she didn't feel as frightened anymore.

"Dammit, Skul," he said, "what is it with you an teenage girls?"

Skulduggery shrugged. "What can I say? I'm a paedophile."

Valkyrie looked at him with an arched eyebrow before her expression turned suspicious. Then she crossed her arms over her chest and said:  
"So that's what you're up to when you're out so late..."

The man chuckled and reached out his hand to Abigail. "I'm Ghastly," he said.

Abigail grabbed it with a sheepish smile. "And I'm not supposed to tell my name," she said.

Skulduggery gave Valkyrie a poke. "See, she didn't stare," he mumbled.

Valkyrie glared at him before he took a step to the side to avoid being slapped across the skull. Ghastly rolled his eyes and made a gesture for Abigail to step further in. Skulduggery and Valkyrie followed into a room with a couch and a chair. They sat down and Ghastly crossed his legs.

"What can I do for you?" he said.

"We need some help with a lock," Skulduggery said.

"And for you to fix her some clothes," Valkyrie said and nodded towards Abigail.

Ghastly smirked. "I guess I can fix that," he said. "Let me have a look at the lock."

Skulduggery looked at Abigail and she showed Ghastly the book. He looked at it and a wrinkle was formed between his eyebrows. He shook his head.

"Sorry. That kind of lock won't break, neither with magic or brute force," he said.

Skulduggery let out a "hmm" as Ghastly gave the book back to Abigail. He took his hat off and scratched his skull.

"So we definitely need the key?" he asked.

Ghastly nodded. "There isn't any other way, unless you have some kind spell that can break open impossible locks such as that one or you have a troll during midnight that is smart enough to not rip apart the entire book," he said.

"Well, the key is either buried with him or in the mansion," Abigail said. "I don't think he would let me inherit the book unless he would let me find the key somewhere as well."

"Buried with who?" Ghastly said.

"Never mind," Skulduggery said to him before he turned to Abigail. "But where would he hide it?"

"Maybe he had some secret compartment in the mansion," Valkyrie said.

"Guys, guys, please. I have no idea what you're talking about, so unless there's something else you want, take it outside," Ghastly said.

Valkyrie insisted that Abigail should have her own special-made clothes to wear and so Ghastly grabbed a sketchbook and started drawing.

"Are there any particular colours that you like?" he asked.

"Red," Abigail said. "Purple. Maybe black."

Ghastly nodded. "I think I can handle that," he said. "Give me two days, then I'll be finished."  
"Two days?" Abigail said. "That's fast."

"Well, he does a fast job," Valkyrie said.

Before they left, Ghastly stopped Skulduggery. He pulled him to the side and excused himself to the girls. Valkyrie and Abigail walked out to the car while they waited for Skulduggery to join them.

"Valkyrie?" Abigail said.

"Yeah?"

"What is it like? I mean, to use magic?"

Valkyrie smirked. "It's... cool, I guess. It has to be taken serious, of course, and it shouldn't be used unless necessary, but it can be fun sometimes. I use Elemental magic and so does Skulduggery, but there are a few that can use different magic," she said.

"Mind telling me about it?" Abigail said.

"Sure. Elemental magic is control over wind, water, fire and earth. It's not as hard as it seems once you get going, but it takes some time to learn. Then there's another type of magic that Mages use. We had one named Nefarian Serpine who could kill by pointing at you. Of course, those are the bigger groups. Then there are Necromancy and other stuff," Valkyrie said with a shrug. "I've learned a little bit of it." She showed Abigail a ring. "The part where I learn how to wake the dead hasn't come up yet, but I don't know why it would be useful to me. The only one I know who's dead is a walking, talking skeleton and it's no use reviving him."

Abigail snickered. "Are you his partner?" she asked.

"Yeah," Valkyrie said. "I've been working with him since I was twelve. It's been four years now."

"Four years? Wow. I'm almost jealous," Abigail snickered.

Valkyrie snorted. "You're the one to talk. I never thought I'd actually get to meet someone that has been so close to Skul that recently," she said. "You really don't remember anything?"

Abigail shook her head. "No. I found a photo album from when I was between two to five – he was on more than half of the pictures," she said.

Valkyrie widened her eyes. "You have to show me," she said.

Abigail smiled. "I will."

Skulduggery stepped out and told them to get in the car. They drove into the city and this time, Valkyrie was the one who wondered where they were going.

"We're going to the Sanctuary. I'm going to see if the Elders can give me a hand," Skulduggery said.

Valkyrie groaned. "You know that they'll just reject you," she said.

Skulduggery turned his head to Abigail. "Not when they see what I've got with me," he said.

Abigail couldn't tell if he was looking at the book or at her, but either way, she felt a bit nervous.

After a few minutes, Skulduggery pulled over outside a wax museum and stepped out of the car. Abigail did the same and looked at the entrance.

"This is the Sanctuary?" she asked and raised her eyebrow sceptically.

"Yeah," Valkyrie said.

"I thought it would be…" Abigail couldn't quite finish the sentence.

"Bigger?" Skulduggery said and stopped at the door.

Abigail blinked. "I was going for 'more church-like', but sure, 'bigger' works just fine," she said and hurried up after Valkyrie.

They got inside and Abigail had to be reminded that they still hadn't quite reached the real destination or she would get too curious about the dolls standing on display. When that happened, Valkyrie cleared her throat or gave Abigail a small touch on the shoulder.

When they reached a brick wall, Skulduggery stopped in front of it and started to feel his hands over it.

"Try the one to your left," Valkyrie said.

Skulduggery looked at the brick a few inches from where he was holding his hand on the wall. He moved his hand to it and pushed it. It sunk into the wall and then, the entire wall moved, revealing a stairwell down to what seemed to be nowhere.

As Skulduggery started going down, Abigail hurried after him and wondered if she should look for anything to hold on the walls or so.

The wall shut itself again and it got completely dark. Abigail let her hand run along the wall next to her as she felt Valkyrie's hand on her shoulder.

"Be careful, girls," Skulduggery said. "I don't want you to get yourself hurt."

Valkyrie gave Abigail a pat. "Don't worry," she mumbled to her. "I've tripped a couple of time, but as long as you don't get the strange idea of trying to run down the stairs, you'll be fine."

Abigail smirked. "I'll take that in advice," she said.

They continued down the stairs and a few times, Abigail stepped on the same step that she stood on and almost tripped, but Valkyrie kept her hand on Abigail's shoulder and made sure that Abigail wouldn't fall down the rest of the steps.

Finally, Abigail could see Skulduggery's figure in front of her. At the end of the stairs, torches hung on the wall outside a door. Skulduggery turned his head to the girls and said:  
"Nothing's broken?"

Valkyrie shook her head. "We're alright," she said.

Skulduggery nodded and knocked on the door. When it opened, Abigail almost thought that it was the same man from China's place, but it wasn't – he just happened to be the same height.

"We need to see the Elders," Skulduggery said.

"Have you asked to see them?" the man said.

"No, but it's urgent," Skulduggery said.

The man sighed and stepped aside to let them in. When they got in to the Sanctuary, Abigail gasped. It was bigger than it seemed to be.

"_This_ is the Sanctuary?" she said, now more impressed than before.

"Yes," Skulduggery said.

At first, Abigail thought that she had stepped straight into a story book. Everything seemed so unreal. But then she also realized – what had seemed even a bit real these two days?

Suddenly, she spotted a man with a scythe. It was the same man from her dream. She gasped and covered her mouth. She started to panic – that thing right there had killed her grandpa.

Valkyrie looked at her. "Abigail? Are you ok?" she mumbled.

Abigail turned to Valkyrie and said:

"That man with the scythe."

"What about him?" Valkyrie said and a troubled wrinkle appeared between her brows.

"He killed my grandpa."


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

**The Trigger**

If he could, Skulduggery would probably blink. Everything about his body language told her that he was confused. Valkyrie had raised her eyebrow and didn't look as much confused as she looked troubled.

"Abigail…" Skulduggery started. "That's a Cleaver. They guard the Sanctuary."

Abigail looked around and not until now did she notice that there were several similar-looking men with scythes. But she knew that that was exactly what had killed Adam in her dream.

"Abby, what makes you think that the Cleaver killed your grandfather?" Valkyrie asked.

"I-I had a dream," Abigail said. "Grandpa told me that I should never let the book out of my sight and that I should only trust Skulduggery. Then one of those," she pointed to the Cleaver, "came out of nowhere and killed him. Then it tried to kill me."

Skulduggery turned his entire body towards her. "It _tried_?" he said.

Abigail nodded. "I just shut my eyes and when I opened them, I was under water, with sharks swimming around me. Then China pulled me up and told me to wake up," she said.

"_China_?" Skulduggery said with a bit of disgust in his voice. Then he shook his head. "Abigail, it was just a dream. If one of these Cleavers would try to kill you, it wouldn't fail."

Abigail glanced at the Cleaver that she first saw, then she sighed. "You're right. It was just a dream," she said.

Skulduggery nodded. "Now, let's go."

Abigail held the book in a tight grip in her arms and couldn't help but to keep an eye on the ominous-looking Cleavers. They reached a big double-door where two Cleavers stood on each side.

They had to wait for at least ten minutes before the doors opened and a woman came out, slightly disappointed. Before Skulduggery took Abigail into the room, he turned to Valkyrie and said:  
"You wait out here."  
"Gladly," Valkyrie said. "Good luck."

"We're going to need it," Skulduggery said.

He made a gesture to Abigail to follow and walked before her as the door started to close. Inside, three men sat up on a big podium and looked down at them.

"Mr. Pleasant," the one in the middle said. "What is it this time?"

"I've found the book," Skulduggery said. "The one about how to destroy the worlds."

The man to the left snorted. "It's just a myth, that book," he said.

Skulduggery grabbed Abigail's arm and pulled her lightly so that she stood in front of him. She blushed as she looked up at the three men that stared back at her. The man in the middle arched his eyebrow and leaned forward.

"What's your name, little girl?" he asked.

"I'm not supposed to tell you," Abigail said irritated. "And I'm not a little girl."

The man to the right chuckled. "A feisty one!" he said. "But what does she have to do with the book?"

"She's the grandchild of the man who wrote it and she's holding it in her hands right now," Skulduggery said.

Abigail looked down at the book in her arms. It looked like any other book that a normal person would own, but that was probably just a distraction. She looked up again when she heard another snort.

"That could be any book," the man in the middle said.

"Let's not make any assumptions," the man to the right said. "Let me see that book."

Abigail held it up for him to see and suddenly it slipped out of her hands, floating up to the men. It hung in the air and slowly spun around.

"It's locked," the man to the left said.

"Yes, that's why we're here," Skulduggery said and stepped up next to Abigail. "We need the key and we're going to need help finding it. If that ends up in the wrong hands, it could mean the end to either the mortal world or the magic world."

"Then leave it here – we'll keep it safe," the man in the middle said.

"No!" Abigail said. "Y-You can't! It's mine!"

The man looked down at her with a gentle smile. "Did you not hear what Mr. Pleasant said, little girl? This book can be dangerous," he said.

Abigail gritted her teeth. "I'm not a little girl! And that book belongs to me!" she said loud and clear. "Now give it back!"

The man to the right sighed. "We can't take something that isn't rightfully ours unless she gives it to us," he said.

The book lowered and Abigail grabbed it as soon as it was within reach. She wrapped her arms around it again and glared at the man in the middle.

"We still need to find the key," Skulduggery said.

"We'll think about it," the man to the left said.

Abigail already hated them. They were so full of themselves. Skulduggery sighed.

"I don't think you understand," he said. "We're going to need to find that key as soon as possible. We can't wait for a month for your answer."

"We're sorry, Mr. Pleasant, but we need to take it into consideration," the man to the right said.

"Bullshit…" Abigail mumbled.

Skulduggery covered it up by coughing and clearing his throat. Abigail gave him a suspicious look.

"Skeletons don't cough," she whispered.

"Well, this one does," he whispered back before he said, "Either you give us the answer now or we're going to take things into our own hands."

"Like always," the man to the left said. "Fine. We will do what we can."

Skulduggery gave them a nod and then made a gesture to Abigail to follow him. The doors opened and they stepped out to a waiting Valkyrie.

"Well?" she said.

"They'll do what they can," Skulduggery said.

Valkyrie sighed. "It's better than nothing…"

"Can't we just get rid of the book?" Abigail asked.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie stopped in their steps and turned to look at her. Valkyrie glanced at Skulduggery and sighed.

"It's not that simple," she said. "It never is."

"Adam never thought he would have enemies, and neither did I – he was a very social and positive man. Let alone did he think that someone would kill him over that book," Skulduggery said. "But he definitely suspected that someone would eventually try to steal it or that someone from the Sanctuary would destroy it. I would. The only thing reasonable to Adam would be to put a protecting spell on it."

"But we can still try, right?" Abigail said.

"If we try, someone will probably get hurt," Valkyrie said.

Abigail felt hopeless. What were they supposed to do when they had found the key? Hide it and the book somewhere and hope no one would find it?

They walked out of the Sanctuary and exited through the wall. They were back at the wax museum. There were a few people here, but no one within sight. They walked out to the car and drove to the mansion.

"I hate them," Abigail said after a few minutes of silence in the passenger's seat.

Skulduggery looked at her. "What?" he said.

"I hate them, the Elders," Abigail explained. "They're so full of it!"

"We know how you feel," Valkyrie said from the back. "But they do what they think is best, which usually is what they please."

Abigail snorted. "I wish someone would just go in there and just say it straight to their faces what cowards they are," she said.

"Be my guest," Skulduggery said with a bit of amusement in his voice.

When they arrived to the mansion, Abigail saw a familiar car parked outside.

"Oh, no," Abigail said. "Carla's here."

"Carla?" Valkyrie said.

"Don't worry," Skulduggery said.

"No, we can't be here! We'll just put her in trouble!"

"She'll be fine."

Skulduggery stepped out of the car and Abigail hurried after to stop him, but Carla had stepped out through the door and saw them. Abigail froze while she held Skulduggery's arm in a hard grip.

Carla stared at Skulduggery and Skulduggery stared at her. Then he took of his scarf and the hat and the sunglasses and revealed his skull to her.

"What are you doing?" Valkyrie shouted, now just as panicked as Abigail.

"Hello, Skulduggery," Carla said cold.

Valkyrie and Abigail froze again and looked up at Carla. Skulduggery gave her a nod.

"Hello, Carla," he said.

Carla walked towards them and had an angered expression on her face. When she stood in front of Skulduggery, she crossed her arms over her chest and stared straight into his eye sockets. Valkyrie and Abigail had no idea what to do. The thought of knocking her out passed through Abigail's mind, but then Carla said:  
"What makes you believe you're welcome here?"

Skulduggery looked down a bit. "This house is property of Abigail, isn't it?" he said.

"_Don't_ say her name! God knows what you'll do," Carla said.

"C-Carla, it's ok," Abigail said. "He hasn't done anything. He's just been helping me."

Carla glanced at Abigail. Then she glared darkly at Skulduggery.

"You better not try anything," she said. "If you've done something to her, I swear, I'll-"

"I haven't done anything. I care about her just as much as you do. And as Adam did," Skulduggery assured her.

Carla arched an eyebrow, then she made a gesture for them to come in. Abigail hurried up next to Carla and asked:  
"You know Skulduggery?"

Carla looked at her. "Yes. But I'm not too fond of the things he's doing," she said.

"What do you mean?" Abigail said.

Carla looked back and then leaned closer to Abigail. She whispered words that Abigail barely heard, but she could still make out what she was saying.

"He helped Adam to train you," she whispered.

Abigail blinked. "How does that make it worth hating him?" she mumbled.

"I don't like magic, Abigail. My family was killed because of magic," Carla said.

Abigail chocked herself. She had a strange feeling of that she had to defend Skulduggery and blurted out:  
"That's not Skulduggery's fault, now is it?"

Carla stopped and looked at Abigail with surprise written all over her face. "What makes you say that?" she stuttered.

"Y-You hate Skulduggery because he does magic! It's not his fault!" Abigail said.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and when she looked up, Skulduggery looked down at her.

"Calm down, Abigail," he said. "If she feels that way, then let her. There's nothing you or I can do about it."

Abigail blushed and looked down at her feet. They walked inside and Skulduggery and Carla went to the kitchen while Valkyrie took Abigail to the company room.

"I want to see the photos," Valkyrie said.

Abigail snickered. "The album's in the bedroom. Wait here and I'll be back in a minute," she said and walked out to the hall.

She went up the stairs and opened the door to the bedroom. Before she knew it, she was knocked to the floor. The thing that held her down growled at her and showed row after row of long, razor-sharp teeth. Its eyes were completely black and it had fur – brown, messy fur. It looked almost like an oversized dog, but on steroids.

Abigail screamed and tried to get away from the monster that now raised its claw. There was a shot and the monster let out a deafening roar. Skulduggery had shot it in the shoulder and gave Abigail an opportunity to get to safety, but when she stood up, the monster scratched her across her back and slammed her into the wall. Valkyrie leapt at the monster and kicked it in the jaw. It growled and threw itself at her, but missed when she took a leap to the side, span around and kicked it in the side.

Abigail managed to stand up, but she lost her balance and when her back touched the wall, she screamed in sheer pain. The monster noticed her again and took a leap towards her.

Then, everything felt like it slowed down. The monster came flying towards her with claws out and a wide open mouth. Skulduggery made an effort to get to Abigail first and get her out of the way while Valkyrie raised her hand towards the monster. But Abigail couldn't do more but to do the best she could to avoid any further damage – she crouched and tried to make herself as small as possible. She covered her head in her arms and prepared for the impact. Suddenly, her entire body started to hurt. For a second, she thought that the monster had gotten to her, but this wasn't it. It felt like her skin was about to explode and reveal the flesh underneath it, but it didn't. Suddenly, it stopped for just a second, then her skin started to feel like it was burning. The wounds on her back felt even worse than before and the pain was almost too much to bear.

She looked up and saw that both Skulduggery and Valkyrie were on the ground. She couldn't see the monster anywhere, but she had a clue – the rail at the edge of the floor was broken, as if something had fallen through it.

Skulduggery groaned and rolled over to stand up. Valkyrie coughed a bit, probably because she got the air knocked out of her. Abigail walked over to the edge and saw the monster on the floor. It was whining a bit and Abigail almost felt sorry for it for a second, but then she remembered that it had tried to kill her.

Then she started to feel drowsy. She stumbled a step backwards before she started falling forward, towards where the monster was. But she felt something grab her around the waist and pull her back up. When she looked back, she saw that it was a shadow. It was coming from Valkyrie's hand. Skulduggery ran up to her and lifted her up in his arms. He put her down on the floor and cupped his hand around her cheek.

"Abigail?" he asked worried.

His voice was very distant and it felt like Abigail was going to fall asleep any second. He waved his hand in front of her face and she looked at it. She grabbed it and started to play with his fingers. Then everything became a blur and the voices she now heard were just mere mumbles. She was so tired. She closed her eyes and figured that she could just have a few minutes of sleep...


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

**Keep Me Company**

_Abigail stumbled down the stairs. There was something strange about the house. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but it could have something to do with the empty armour walking around in the kitchen. It was Derrick's armour. When he noticed her, he gave her a gesture of open arms and said:_

"_Abigail! There you are!"_

_He grabbed her arm and told her to sit down. He sat down across the table and looked at her._

"_You're feeling lonely, aren't you?" he said._

_Abigail blinked. "Uh… n-not that I know of, no," she said._

"_Don't be afraid to admit it. The only thing you should be afraid of is that name of yours. If you're going to make it with Skulduggery and Valkyrie, you need another name," Derrick said._

"_A new name? Why?" Abigail said._

"_Didn't Valkyrie tell you? If a Sorcerer knows your name, they can control you. You need a new name. Do you wish to do some brain storming?"_

"_No, I- wait, how can a knight even know that there is something called brain storming?" Abigail said._

_Suddenly, there was a bang on the door. Abigail looked back and felt that she needed to open the door._

"_Don't mind whoever's outside," Derrick said, "it's not important."_

_Abigail stood up and walked out in the hall. The armour stood up so fast that the chair fell._

"_Abigail, don't open the door!" he shouted. But it was too late. Abigail had opened the door and outside was a giant, black hole. It was swallowing the ground and everything that came close and it was coming towards the house._

_On the other side of it stood China. She reached out her hand to Abigail and shouted:  
"Come to me!"_

_Derrick showed up behind Abigail. "Now that you know what's out there, would you mind if we left?"_

"_You have to leap across!" China shouted._

"_Don't trust her. She's just trouble," Derrick said._

_Abigail then realized what Derrick's voice sounded like. It reminded her of…_

"_Skulduggery?" she said and turned around to look at him._

_Derrick turned his head to her, then he sighed and lifted the beaver and revealed a skull. The armour disappeared and he wore his suit and hat, as always._

"_Let's get out of here," he said and grabbed her hand._

_He jumped down into the hole, pulling Abigail with him and so they fell. China screamed "NO!" in frustration as the dark swallowed them._

Abigail opened her eyes and blinked. She was lying in the couch in the company room this time. The book was lying on the table, just within reach. She sat up and was just about to grab it when someone said her name and Skulduggery crouched in front of her.

"Are you ok?" he asked.

Abigail blinked. "Yeah," she said. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You don't remember?" Skulduggery said. "You were attacked by a monster and-" But he didn't have to continue.

Abigail gasped when she remembered what had happened. She immediately started to try to reach for her back to see if the wound was there, but it wasn't. Her shirt wasn't even ripped. When she looked at herself, she realized that she was wearing new clothes. She looked at Skulduggery.

"Don't worry, Valkyrie dressed you," he said.

Abigail looked at her arm and remembered how her skin had burned before she passed out. When she touched it, she could feel that it was a bit sore.

"What happened?" she asked.

Skulduggery sat down next to her in the couch. "We found out what triggered your magic. I must say, it was very strong," he said.

She glanced at him. "I'm sorry," she said. "You're not hurt, are you?"

"No, I'm not hurt. You caught me off guard, though, but I'll be fine," Skulduggery said. "Valkyrie's just a bit… surprised. If you get control of that, you'll go far."

Abigail looked at the book on the table. She grabbed it and let her hand run over the cover. The lock almost looked even more complicated than the first time she saw it. Suddenly, Abigail came to think of something.

"What time is it?" she said.

Skulduggery pulled up a watch from his pocket and looked at it.

"Half past five," he said.

Just then, Abigail's stomach let out a small, growling sound. Skulduggery looked at her and Abigail had a feeling that he was smiling.

"Let's get you something to eat, then I'll drive you home," he said.

He helped Abigail stand up and took her to the kitchen. Valkyrie sat at the table, reading a book. She looked up when they came in and she smiled at them.

"Your grandpa's got some interesting books," she said.

"I know," Abigail said and smiled. "My favourite is 'The Diary of Anne Frank'. Have you read it?"

"No, but my Mum has. She says it's quite ok," Valkyrie said and put the book down.

"_Quite ok?_" Abigail said. "That's it?"

Valkyrie snickered. "Yeah. There's nothing I can do about it," she said.

Carla came in and put her hand on Abigail's shoulder. "Sit down, I'll make you something to eat," she said.

Abigail smiled. "Thanks, Carla," she said.

Skulduggery stood leaning against the counter and looked at Valkyrie and Abigail.

"We still have no clue to where he might have hid the key," he said.

"Don't ask me," Abigail said, "I'm as clueless as you are."

"You don't happen to have any idea, Carla?" Valkyrie said.

Carla shook her head. "No. If I knew, I'd lead you to it," she said.

Skulduggery turned his head just an inch toward Carla, probably glancing at her. But then he looked at Abigail and said:  
"You seemed very uneasy when you slept. Did you have a nightmare?"

Abigail blinked. She had almost forgotten about her dream. She started to think about if it meant something or if it just was something that her mind cooked up after everything that had happened. When she answered Skulduggery's question, she just said:

"It was just a dream. Nothing that really mattered."

Valkyrie put the book down. "Hey, you never showed me that photo album," she said.

"I'll show you it to you then," Abigail said and stood up.

Valkyrie followed her up the stairs to the bedroom and Abigail just had to make sure that there wasn't any monster hiding behind the door before she walked inside. She sat down on her bed and grabbed the photo album on the bedside table. Valkyrie sat down next to her and looked at the photos while Abigail flipped the pages.

"You were cute when you were little," Valkyrie said.

Abigail snickered. "Thanks. To be honest, finding everything out the way I did seems a bit…"

"Suspicious?" Valkyrie said. "Strange? Scary?"

"No. It's like when you have a Band-Aid on and you're about to pull it off – it's better to pull it off quickly than to just keep pulling until it comes off," Abigail said. "I think finding things out the way I have during these two days has been like ripping off a Band-Aid. If it had been taking a few weeks to find it out, I probably would've just gone and hid in a corner."

"Oh," Valkyrie said. "That sounds quite reasonable."

When they had looked through the album, they talked for a while. Valkyrie told Abigail some stories about the things she had done with Skulduggery and the adventures that she had been through. Eventually, Skulduggery came up and looked in through the door.

"Abigail? We should get you home," he said.

"Oh, right," Abigail said and got off the bed. "See you tomorrow, Val."  
"Yeah, see ya," Valkyrie said and smiled.

"I'll be back in a while," Skulduggery said to her and then followed Abigail down the stairs.

Abigail grabbed the book from the kitchen before she said good bye to Carla and walked out to the Bentley with Skulduggery.

"Wait!" Carla said at the door. "Aren't you going to eat?"

Abigail smirked. "I can eat when I come home. I think I'll survive a while longer."

They got in and while they drove down the little path, Skulduggery gave Abigail a few glances.

"I talked to Carla," he said.

Abigail looked at him. "About what?" she said.

"About a lot of things. About Adam, his researches, you and the things that have been occurring," he said. "She's very protective of you – she told me that if I let anything happen to you, she will personally pull me apart, bone by bone."

Abigail grimaced. "That doesn't sound that very… _pleasant_," she said.

Skulduggery chuckled. "It isn't, either."

Abigail smiled and looked at her hands. "How did I do that, anyway?" she asked.

"Do what?" Skulduggery asked.

"How did I knock you and Valkyrie over? How did I send the monster flying over the edge?"she said.

Skulduggery sighed. "I remember one time when Adam was going to show me what you had learned. You could create small orbs of this... black energy. You hadn't quite learned how to control the amount of energy you put in those little orbs, so if one touched them, they'd probably get electrocuted. But once, Carla was in the kitchen, cooking some dinner for us and when we came in, she knocked a plate down from the counter and you got so startled that you charged your own body with some of that energy and you released out as a defensive action. Even though you were so small, it was a powerful strike. You had so little control of your impulsivity that your powers were a danger to yourself and to pretty much anyone else around you. The only control you had was when you would do those little orbs. If you had charged too much, you would have to release the energy somehow, so Adam often trained you by letting you release the energy onto the wall of the garage. It was amazing that it didn't blow up," he said.

Abigail looked at him. "So... my trigger is my instinct of self-preservation?" she said.

Skulduggery shrugged. "That's more of a reflex, something you can't control. A real trigger is something that can make you use your magic longer, like you did with the orbs," he said.

Abigail looked back at her hands again. "So it wasn't a trigger," she stated.

"No. But it's a start," Skulduggery said with optimism.

She sighed. Of course it was a start, but she rather wanted to know how to use her magic right away.

The rest of the ride was silent, although Abigail had her head full of questions, just begging to be asked. She took a breath once to say something, but when she glanced at Skulduggery, she cut off midair and ignored it.

They arrived at Abigail's house and she had a strange feeling that something wasn't quite right. She unbuckled the seat belt, but she didn't get out of the car. Skulduggery looked at her.

"Abby? Is something wrong?" he asked.

She hesitated. "I don't know..." she said. "Something just doesn't feel right."

"It's probably just your nerves, don't worry. I can follow you inside," he said.

She looked at him. "I'd like that," she said.

They got out of the car together and got in the house. Her Dad wasn't supposed to be home yet and there shouldn't be anything to worry about, but yet, there was something that wasn't right.

Skulduggery walked into the living room, checked the kitchen and the bathroom. There was nothing there. He followed Abigail upstairs and checked the bathroom there while Abigail went into her bedroom. When she first opened the door, she instantly realized that there was something that shouldn't be there or hadn't been there before, and when she stepped in, she regretted that she hadn't stopped herself.

There was something in her bed. It wasn't a human or a creature at all, but it was enough to make Abigail gasp in horror. When she tried to say Skulduggery's name, it was barely a whisper. But he had already heard her and when he came up next to her, he froze.

On the sheets of her bed was a dress, covered with blood. It was one of her own dresses, a regular blue one, and one that she had used pretty often. It was a bit ripped over the chest and some of the blood stains looked a bit like hand prints. Resting on the ripped and bloodied dress was a note. Skulduggery walked up to the bed and grabbed it, since Abigail was paralyzed. He sighed.

"What does it say?" Abigail whispered.

Skulduggery stared at the note before he glanced at Abigail and walked over to her. He gave her the note and she didn't take her eyes off of him until she held the note in her hand.

The letters on it were written with an exquisite hand-writing and the ink was red. But even though it looked very pretty, the message wasn't.

_Dear Miss Pieters.  
You have something that belongs to me. The Book. If you would be so kind to give it to me, I won't bother you again. But if you don't, that will be your blood the next time. Or a loved one's..._

The horror was overwhelming. She couldn't keep a grip of the note – her hands were trembling too much. Her vision blurred as tears filled her eyes.

Skulduggery grabbed her hands and looked at her as she started quivering between her sobs.

"H-He knows my name... h-he..." she sobbed.

Skulduggery hushed and wrapped his arms around her. Then he cupped his hands around her face and looked into her eyes.

"I can stay if you want me to," he said.

Abigail shook her head. "No," she said.

"Do you want me to go?" he asked.

She shook her head again. "No. I don't want to stay here. I want to stay at the mansion. With you and Valkyrie," she said.

Skulduggery nodded. "Ok. Do you have any body-length mirrors?" he said.

Abigail wiped off a tear, wondering what would make him ask that. "Yeah," she said. "In the hall." She looked at the dress. "I can't just leave it there."

Skulduggery looked at it as well. "Don't worry about it."

He took her down the stairs to the hall where the mirror hung on the wall. He pulled a chalk from his pocket and drew a symbol on the mirror. He muttered a few words, then he said:  
"Touch it."

She did so and suddenly, the reflection came to life. She gasped when it stepped out of the mirror and looked at Abigail.

"Oh, my God," she gasped and reached out her hand to it. When she touched it, the reflection simply looked at her hand and then at her face. "It's me," she mumbled.

"No," Skulduggery said. "It's a reflection of you. Come on, let's go. It will trick your parents into believing that it's you. It can stay here while you're at the mansion."

"B-But... can it talk?" Abigail said.

"Of course I can talk," the reflection said softly.

Abigail flinched at the sound of her own voice and blinked. "Wow..." she whispered. "But... won't they notice anything strange?"

"Maybe – it might act a bit different than you usually do, but they won't pay too much attention to it. If you're going to use it again, make sure that you don't wear any jewelleries of anything with a logo on it. They will come out backwards, so you have to be thorough about it," Skulduggery said.

"Are you sure they won't notice?" Abigail asked.

Skulduggery shook his head. "I'm sure. Don't worry. If they'll suspect anything, it will only be that you might be a bit down or something," he said.

Abigail sighed reluctantly before she gave the reflection a short smile and walked back out to Skulduggery's Bentley. In the passenger's seat, Abigail pulled her feet up on the seat and hugged her legs. She looked at him. The drive back to the mansion was quiet and the entire way, she didn't let her eyes off the skeleton man next to her. She asked once, only once:  
"Is my family in danger?"

He looked at her and sighed. He hesitated before he nodded. "Yes," he said. "Yes, I'm afraid so."


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

**A Real Name**

When they got back to the mansion, Valkyrie and Carla were surprised to that Abigail was back with Skulduggery. Skulduggery told Carla and Valkyrie what had happened while Abigail went through the message on the note through her head over and over again. The conclusion she got was that if she didn't give the book to the person who had written the note, she would pay with either her own life or someone that she loved. She was sixteen – she shouldn't have to choose between any of that.

Abigail sat on the bed with Valkyrie next to her. They weren't saying much – Valkyrie was just keeping her company. Once again, Valkyrie reminded Abigail of Pamela. When Abigail would be sad, Pamela used to just sit with her and talk about whatever they had in mind until Abigail was ready to say what made her so sad.

"Valkyrie..." Abigail said, interrupting Valkyrie's interesting story about a man called Billy Ray Sanguine.

She looked at her. "Yes?"

"What should I do?" Abigail said. "You said that if a Sorcerer knows my name, he can control me."

"Yeah," Valkyrie said. "But if you pick another name, they won't be able to control you."

"So I should choose another name?" Abigail said. Valkyrie nodded.

They were quiet for a while. Downstairs, Skulduggery was talking to Carla. Valkyrie was watching Abigail and Abigail was watching Valkyrie.

"I'm a dancer, did you know that?" Abigail said after a few seconds.

Valkyrie smirked. "Really?" she said.

Abigail nodded. "Ballroom, ballet and a couple of other dances as well. When I was little, the only thing I had in common with the other girls was that I wanted to be a ballerina. Otherwise I just ran around, playing with the boys. Fighting with sticks and pretending that pinecones were grenades. "Valkyrie snickered. "I think grandpa had a lot to do with it," Abigail continued. "He kept telling me stories of knights and princesses, but I somehow... tired of it always hearing the same outcome. The knight and the princess got married and lived happily ever after, you know? So he told me the story of a knight called Derrick who had a friend with him on every adventure. Every time I visited here, grandpa would tell me a new story of yet another one of their adventures. I loved it. But eventually... Derrick died in one of the stories. He saved his friend from one of the bad guys, a man called Aaron."

"What was the name of Derrick's friend?" Valkyrie asked.

Abigail frowned. "He never got a real name, actually. Although, I used to call him Iv. It was short for ivory," she said.

"Ivory?" Valkyrie said.

Abigail nodded. "Because he was so pale. His skin was like ivory, grandpa used to say. So I called him Iv. Grandpa just went with it. But... when Derrick died... grandpa never told me what happened to Iv. He killed Aaron with Derrick's sword and that was it. But grandpa taught me a valuable lesson about it. He said that everything needs an end and that it can't always be the ending that you'd want it to be," she said. "But I liked it that way somehow. I mean, it felt... strange and not right, but I still liked it. That it got _some_ kind of ending."

Valkyrie smirked. "That's sounds nice."

Abigail smiled at her and sighed. "Those stories always cheer me up when I'm down. I've got everyone of them right in here," she said and tapped her head.

"Great memory," Valkyrie snickered.

Abigail snickered as well. "Yeah, well, they're not so hard to remember."

She sighed and looked at her feet. When Adam had told her those stories, she had been able to see herself in Iv – he was a kind, but tough boy that didn't have that many friends. Then Derrick died and he barely had any friends at all. Kind of like when Pamela died. When she went away, people didn't talk that much to Abigail anymore. She had cut herself – once – and when they saw the scar on her wrist, it only alienated them even more. She had her times when she thought that they figured she just didn't want to be with anyone at all anymore and that she was just prancing around like the ballerina she was.

She heard Skulduggery's voice call for Valkyrie down the stairs. Valkyrie answered and left Abigail with a short smile.

Abigail didn't quite like to be alone after the things that had happened. Even though they were far away, she couldn't help but to imagine how surprised a silent kill would leave them when they found her corpse. Although, she probably wouldn't make it that very silent. She'd scream as much as possible and she'd probably put up a fight. Or… at least she'd try.

Then something occurred to her. If she chose a name, it would have to fit. And she would have to be serious about it. She had an idea.

She got out of the bed and walked downstairs to find Skulduggery and Valkyrie in the kitchen, both turned towards Carla. They were still talking and at first, Carla didn't seem too concerned, but when Abigail showed up in the entrance to the kitchen, her face turned into a smug smile.

"Abigail," she said softly.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie turned around and looked at her. Valkyrie looked a bit worried and she couldn't see what Skulduggery looked like, but she was guessing that if he had a face, it would be set on the same expression as Valkyrie.

"Abigail," Carla said again, "go grab a fire iron…"

Skulduggery covered her mouth. "Shut up, Carla," he growled.

"What's going on?" Abigail said.

Valkyrie sighed. "Carla's… one of the bad guys," she said.

Abigail looked at Carla. "What?" she said.

Carla punched Skulduggery and launched herself at Abigail. She wrestled her down and said:  
"Take a fire iron and kill them! Kill Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain!"

Abigail pushed her off of her. "No!" she shouted.

Carla frowned. "What the…" she said.

"She's picked a name," Valkyrie stated.

Abigail didn't acknowledge Valkyrie's comment. She was seeing completely red. She thought Carla had been her friend, but it just turned out that she was a traitor.

"I thought I could trust you!" she said.

Carla stood up and snickered. "Sorry," she said.

She raised her hand, but Skulduggery grabbed her and wrestled her down to the floor. While Carla hissed at him and swore over and over again, Valkyrie walked over to Abigail.

"What's your name?" she asked with a smirk.

Abigail took her eyes off of Carla and turned her face to Valkyrie.

"Ivory. Ivory Prance."

"I think it's cool."

"Really?"

"Yeah!"

"I think that the 'Prance' part is a bit…"

"You're just jealous."

"You think I'd rather be called Skulduggery Prance? No, thanks!"

Valkyrie and Ivory snickered. Valkyrie put her arm around Abigail's shoulders.

"I think that Ivory Prance is great!" she said. "Valkyrie Cain and Ivory Prance… I like the sound of that."

Skulduggery looked at them from the door into the mansion. If he could, he'd definitely blink.

"What – you're dumping me because she has a cool name?" he said.

Valkyrie grinned. "I'm definitely thinking about it," she said.

Abigail snickered. She thought it was a very clever name. Iv, from Adam's stories, meant a lot to her and since she was a ballerina, prancing around on stage, it would make a great name. And it did.

It was getting dark outside. Abigail wondered how her reflection would handle her parents. But her line of thought was broken by Skulduggery's voice.

"We still need to focus on finding the key," he said.

"Did you know that Carla was…?" Abigail started, but she couldn't finish the sentence.

"A bad person?" he said. "Well… I didn't know at first, but when she said that since the key was yours, she could protect it better than any of us, I started to get a bit suspicious, actually. It really surprised me that she tried to control you, considering how she doesn't like magic."

"Can she even do anything?" Valkyrie said.

"Well, that's for the people in the Sanctuary to find out," Skulduggery said.

Valkyrie sighed. "So… the key. Where could Adam have hidden it?"

"If he hasn't buried it with him, he probably left it in something that Abi- I mean _Ivory_, inherited," Skulduggery said.

"But what?" Abigail said. "I've inherited his mansion, all – and I repeat – _all_ of his books and his LPs and a car."

Skulduggery froze in the middle of his process of turning around. He slowly turned his head to her.

"You figured something out," Valkyrie stated.

"The car," Skulduggery said. "We haven't looked there."

Abigail blinked. Then she stood up and walked out to the garage. She opened the door and inside stood a perfectly polished Aston Martin with a convertible roof. Valkyrie showed up next to her and stared at it.

"Wow…" she said. "It's even cooler than Skulduggery's Bentley. Promise me that when we're allowed to drive, you'll take me for a test run."

Skulduggery sighed behind them. "You kids are so easily affected."

They started searching through the car, but there was no sign of any key or any hidden compartments. Abigail sat in the driver's seat, trying to see if there was anything at the glove compartment or anything else. But no. She rested her head against the steering wheel and thought that the car would give out a loud _BEEP_, but it didn't. She sat up straight again and looked at the horn. She pressed it, but there wasn't any sound coming from the car.

"Guys," she said.

Valkyrie, who had been going through the backseat, leaned over to the front seat and looked at her. Skulduggery came around the back.

"What is it?" he said.

Abigail pressed the steering wheel again, but yet again, not a sound. "Shouldn't the horn be working?" she asked.

Valkyrie and Skulduggery glanced at each other. Abigail tried to pry the little thing that contained the horn itself, but it was too hard and she broke a nail in the process. She winced as Skulduggery gave it a try, with more success. He managed to get it open a bit, then Abigail helped him and then Valkyrie reached over and grabbed it as well. They all pulled and eventually, it suddenly came off. Skulduggery's elbow hit Abigail's chest and Valkyrie lost balance and fell back in the seat.

When they looked inside the steering wheel, Abigail was disappointed. There wasn't any key in there. She sighed.

"Great…" she groaned as she rubbed her chest.

"I found something," Valkyrie said.

Abigail turned and saw Valkyrie lying on the backseat and fiddling with something underneath the passenger's seat. Abigail climbed over as Skulduggery stood outside the car. Abigail leaned over Valkyrie and saw Valkyrie trying to pull something out from the bottom of the seat.

"It's weird – I've looked there like five times," Valkyrie said as Abigail helped her to pull.

"Those things can be hard to notice, even for me," Skulduggery said.

"Oh, shut up," Valkyrie said. "You could help a bit more, you know."

"How? The two of you are completely occupying the entire backseat and it's already looking a bit too complicated as it is," Skulduggery said.

There was a ringing sound coming from his coat. "You can start with answering the phone," Valkyrie said.

Abigail snickered as Skulduggery _harrumphed_ and pulled the phone up from his pocket to answer it.

"Hello? Tanith? I didn't expect for you to call. Usually, you call Valkyrie if there's anything you have to say. Oh. Well, she's a bit… busy. I mean that she's helping a friend of mine. No, you haven't met _her_." He was quiet for a few seconds. "What are you implying?"

Suddenly, the little thing under the seat budged and they managed to pull out a small box. But the sudden pull down got Abigail to fall off the seat and as Valkyrie tried to catch her, she fell too.

"Are you ok?" they heard Skulduggery ask with a bit of amusement in his voice.

"Yeah," Abigail said. "We're fine."

Valkyrie got up and helped Abigail before they looked at the box. Valkyrie grabbed it and tried to open it when a sudden flash of electricity went through her hand. She gasped and let it go. She sunk down into the seat and held her hand to her chest.

"Valkyrie!" Skulduggery burst out and ignored the loud, worried voice in the phone. "Valkyrie, are you ok?"

Valkyrie nodded as she breathed through her teeth. Abigail grabbed the box and looked at it.

"What was that?" she asked.

"I would guess that's a defensive spell. Those who don't need the key will pretty much get electrocuted," Skulduggery said as he helped Valkyrie get out of the car. He returned to the phone. "Tanith, calm down. Yeah, she's fine."

While Skulduggery was on the phone and cared for Valkyrie's hand, Abigail moved her hand over the lid of the box. It was a simple box, made out of tin. There wasn't any lock to it, so there was no need for a key. But after what happened to Valkyrie, it would still be a challenge to get the key out from the box.

"Tanith is coming over," Skulduggery said and Abigail noticed that he had hung up.

"Ok," Abigail said and continued trying to figure out how to open the box.

Maybe there wouldn't be any electricity left in it. Maybe she could just fling it open and hope to pull away before she could get electrocuted.

She decided to try and Skulduggery didn't notice it until it was too late.

The second the lid lifted, electricity sparked from the inside and went through her hand. But it wasn't painful. She felt the surge of energy race through her arm, up to her head and to her chest. It filled her entire body and followed her veins in less than a second. She felt warm and very comfortable as she continued to open the lid. She saw the key inside and when she reached in to grab it, the surge of energy had become a soft, pulsing beat inside her body. She held the key in her hand and she let the box drop down to the seat with a soft _thump_.

She looked at the key and then up at Skulduggery who was standing in a defensive stance in front of Valkyrie. Abigail guessed that he was surprised of what happened – it was almost written all over his skeleton face.

The pulsing stopped and the surging feeling disappeared.

"Abby," Skulduggery said softly, "are you ok?"

Abigail took a deep breath. "I'm… I'm great," she said. "I feel wonderful." Then she glared at him. "My name's Ivory."

"Sorry," Skulduggery said.

He reached out his hand to the key and when Abigail gave it to him, she sort of suspected that Skulduggery would get the same reaction that Valkyrie had, but he didn't. It had just been the box.

It looked like any other key. It was a normal key to the kind of lock you have on those amateur diaries. It hung on its chain from Skulduggery's hand and dangled in front of his face.

"That's the key to the book?" Valkyrie said – sounding just a tad bit sceptical.

"Yes," Skulduggery said.

"What do we do with it?" Abigail said as she got out of the car.

"I'm guessing that we open the book with it," Skulduggery said.

Abigail slapped his arm. "That's not what I meant! I meant – do we hide it somewhere or…?"

Skulduggery shook his head. "You carry it with you," he said and gave it to her. "But you need to keep the book somewhere safe."

Abigail hung the key around her neck. "And where's safe?"

Valkyrie sighed. "China's library," she said.

"It's the best place to keep it," Skulduggery said. "We'll take the book to her the first thing in the morning."

"I actually get to sleep?" Valkyrie said.

"Yeah," Skulduggery said.

"Great, I haven't actually slept in three days," she said and smiled to Abigail.

Abigail smiled back at her as they made their way back to the house. The search for the key had taken longer than Abigail figured and now, the moon was up and the stars lit up the night sky. Valkyrie let out a yawn and went to lie down in the couch in the company room.

Abigail was going up the stairs when she saw that Skulduggery went into the kitchen.

"Aren't you going to sleep?" Abigail asked.

Skulduggery looked at her. "I don't need to. That's one of the good things about being dead. I meditate. It's a lot like sleeping," he said. He made a gesture towards her. "Go to bed, Ivy."

"Ivory," Abigail corrected.

"Yeah, but Ivy sounds nice," Skulduggery said. "Besides, it's easier to say."

Abigail smirked. "Good night, Skulduggery," she said.

"Good night." He paused. "Ivory."


End file.
